Adolf Schmidt (18 April 1925 – 26 November 2013) was aGerman trade union leader and politician.
Born inHolzhausen [de],Homberg, Schmidt became a mechanic at a coal mine, then in 1942 was drafted into the navy as a submarine mechanic. He was taken as a prisoner of war and released at the end of the war, returning to the pit. In 1947, he joined theUnion of Mining and Energy (IG BE), and immediately won election to the works council at the mine. In 1949, he joined theSocial Democratic Party of Germany (SPD), and the following year he studied in Frankfurt.[1]
In 1951, Schmidt began working full-time for IG BE, as itsMunich youth secretary, then he successively ran the union's offices inBreisgau andGießen, before in 1965 he became head of the union's Hesse-Rhineland-Palatinate district, and also won election to its executive.[1]
In 1969, Schmidt was elected as the president of IG BE, on a platform of improving working conditions in coal mines, and preserving jobs in coal mining and at nuclear power stations. In 1971, he was additionally elected as president of theMiners' International Federation, and in 1972 he was elected as an SPD member of theBundestag.[1]
Schmidt stood down from his international post in 1984, as president of the IG BE in 1985, and from the Bundestag in 1987.[1]
| Trade union offices | ||
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| Preceded by | President of theUnion of Mining and Energy 1969–1985 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by ? | President of theMiners' International Federation 1971–1984 | Succeeded by |
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| SPD |
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| FDP |
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| GRÜNE |
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| OTHER |
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| People | |
